”Well fook. We ‘ain’t getting younger and we aren’t going to learn anything more than we do. Let’s just go and say ‘ello. Worst comes to worst we’ll run.” With that Bolkvar began to walk forward, towards the residence. Despite acting brave, there was some hesitation in his step. But when faced with something scary, he reasoned that the best way was to just face it.
Bolkvar makes his way forward. He hesitates as he reaches the outlying fetishes, but they do nothing, just bits of grass and hair wrapped around frames of twigs.
The wind chimes rattle bone on bone in a slight breeze that gusts through, but nothing else stirs the blighted glade.
Taking a deep breath he continued, each step half expecting something bad to happen.
Bolkvar makes it all the way to the door with nothing happening. The only sound is the continuous rattle of the wind chime; otherwise, even the very air of the entire clearing is as still as death.
Anybody else following?
Unwilling to let someone else take all the credit for valor, Mathine hurries to meet with Bolkvar, falling in step with him as they approach the hut. "Hello?" she calls, trying to mask the nervousness in her voice. "Is anyone there? Please, we need your help."
No reply.
Watching Bolkvar take the lead and hearing no response from Mathine's query, Oryn carefully follows Bolkvar to the hut's door.
"I'm right behind you Bolkvar, but I'm not touching anything unless I absolutely have to. I don't want any hexes cast on me!"
Oryn keeps his eyes on the trees and the roof of the hut checking to see if anything above is lurking. He has his spear clenched tightly in both hands pointing to the sky in hopes that it will catch anything that attacks from above.
"You plan on knocking Bolkvar? Sounds like no one is home, but it could be an ambush."
Bolkvar took a deep and nodded. ”Mathine, watch me back...” He said as he (bravely?) knocked on the door.
No answer
"OK, sounds like we're not talking our way through this. Ready when you are Bolkvar. Mathine, you ready?"
Bolkvar pushes on the door, having to give it an extra heave inwards through rusty hinges.
Inside, the cottage is dank, reeking, and filled with shadows. Haphazardly hung shelves line the walls, covered in all manner of clay jugs, clouded bottles, strangely cut rocks, rotted bunches of herbs, and a museum of other crude curios and remnants of a bone grinder’s artifice. A rusted iron cauldron, with a mouth nearly 5 feet wide and a depth of at least 3 feet, dominates the hut’s single room, its ash-covered surface shaped with a relief of capering fiends and leering devils. Across from the door, against the far walls, stands a high-backed chair made of wicker, the gigantic curved tusks of some monstrous beast, and thousands of human teeth. A humanoid form, covered in musty blankets against the cold sits motionless as Bolkvar enters.
Oryn will follow Bolkvar in looking for any kind of movement within the shelves being careful not to disturb anything. He does not go far into the hut, ready to bolt out the door at the first sign of trouble.
"What is that thing with all the blankets? And look at those symbols on the cauldron. They look very evil to me. Mathine, do you recognize any of them?"
Oryn softly starts a prayer to Gozreh, thanking him for all his help with this mission to save the people of Falcon's Hollow. He hopes he will not need his diety's help again, but prays that Gozreh will hear his cry if things don't go well.
Nervously, Mathine steps through the door, approaching the blanket-swathed figure. "H-hello?" she asks in what she hopes is a pleasant voice as she reaches to set a hand on the figure's shoulder, trying to mask the waver in it. "Are you Ulizmila?"
Bolkvar held his hands up as he took a tentative step inside. ”Aye, mean ye no harm, ye witchiness. Just came to talk.” That was the polite term for a witch...or at least he thought so.
As Mathine approaches the figure on the chair and reaches out her hand, a soft yellow glow emerges from within the folds of the musty blanket in the face region. A thing, crackly voice responds.
”Who are you to disturb me, enter my home, and rob me of my possessions? Flee now, before you are cursed or dead!”
Oryn steps closer to the figure in the chair.
"My name is Oryn, are you known as Ulizmila? We have heard of someone with that name who might be able to help us.
We are from Falcon's Hollow and we are here to acquire a single item - something called Rat's Tail - it is a kind of pickled tree root. This item will be used to help cure the people of Falcon's Hollow from a deadly disease - Blackscour Taint.
If it is possible for us to trade for this item, we can make the trade and go in peace. Will you please help us?"
Oryn bows his head and whispers another prayer to Gozreh while he waits for a response.
(+2 to notice unusual stonework)
”Trade? It is more likely you are here to rob me.”
Outside, the wind chimes begin to clink more vigorously, though Kali detects no uptick in the wind speed.
Mathine's hand suddenly recoils from the figure, though she tries her best to mask her surprise. "We are not here to rob you," she answers. "I swear it, by Iomedae's shield. But as my friend says, we need rat's tail for a plague remedy, and we are prepared to pay."
Oryn's nervousness increases as the voice sounds unconvinced of their intentions.
"We will not steal from you. Stealing is wrong. Is there any way we can convince you we are not here to rob you?"
With the sounds of the wind chimes, Oryn steps back out of the hut to investigate the noise.
"Kali, is everything OK out here?"
"Yes. I'm changing the dressing on this fox. What's all the hubbub about?"
”I want nothing of yours and you can having nothing of mine. Leave now, and never come back!”
Those inside the hut hear the sound of wind coming from the large cauldron in the centre of the room, and a breeze begins to swirl inside the hut.
Outside, a wind has picked up in the clearing, though being right next to the hut itself it seems offers Kali some protection. The grass fetishes begin to twitch and sway in the wind.
Upon hearing these words, a sadness comes across Oryn's face.
To Kali "We are not able to negotiate a trade with whatever is inside the hut. It wants us to leave. I am afraid we are going to have to fight to get the Rat's Tail."
Oryn wonders if he has offended Gozreh by asking too much of him.
After another quick prayer to Gazreh, Oryn looks back inside the hut and adds "There is a strange wind coming from a huge cauldron in the center of the hut. I fear some dark magic is upon us."
Kali calls into the hut "So you're fine with allowing a bunch of people to die horribly because you're a bit upset?" while keeping her voice as even as possible.
Outside the hut, wind swirls more and more strongly in a perfect circle around the hut. The grass and stick fetishes lift from the ground and orbit the hut on the wind. Kali is safe for the moment, but more than 5 feet from the hut, there is a band of tornado strength winds ten feet wide completely surrounding you. Trees on the edge of the clearing whip and sway; branches crack and add more deadly shrapnel to the unnatural cyclone.
Inside the hut, the wind builds only to the level of a strong breeze. The rocking chair begins to sway and one corner of the blanket covering the figure in the chair flaps back, revealing sticks and bits of moss rather than human flesh. Things hanging from the rafters begin to whip about as well, but the breeze inside does not seem to disturb any of the items on the shelves.
The large iron cauldron shift, though not from the wind. Its legs flex as it turns towards Mathine, and it’s opening begins to open and close like a giant metal mouth.
Round 1
You are all up first.
Already on edge, the second the cauldron came to life, Bolkvar let out a scream which he hoped sounded like a battlecry, and sent a chunk of stone flying at it.
Not convinced his air attacks will harm the cauldron, Oryn uses his spear to attack the animated monstrosity.
Bolkvar’s and Oryn’s attacks both hit, denting the cauldron slightly, but both clearly doing less damage than they should have.
Kali does her best to shield the fox from the wind and shouts out "I guess you are the monster they believe you to be."
With a shout, Mathine pulls her blade from its scabbard, and a soft glow dances over its edge as she swings it at the cauldron.
Mathine was not expecting an iron cauldron to be so nimble as it avoids her glowing blade.
Rao then the cauldron.
The cauldron attempts to chomp down on Mathine’s leg.
Instead the cauldron trips over its own feet, rolls and pops back up ready to bite again.
Round 2
Everybody’s up.
Oryn attempts to stab the cauldron with his spear again.
Oryn’s spear bounces off the side of the cauldron without inflicting damage.
"Can you please stop. You're scaring the fox." Kali said, exasperatedly.
Mathine swings again with her glowing sword, while Rao sees an opening to extend his hand and fling fire at the iron, and Bolkvar conjures another large rock.
Alas, her sword makes no impact on the hard metal, and Rao’s flare collided with Bolkvar’s rock and both explode in a shower of burning grit.
The cauldron resumes its attack on Mathine, again with pathetic results.
Round 3
Everybody is up again.
Surprised by the turn of events, Hrungnir tried to form another boulder. But his lack of concentration made it fall apart into rubble while still in his hands.
Frustrated that the last attack with his spear just bounced off the cauldron, Oryn decides to switch back to his air attacks.
Oryn’s air stream catches the cauldron right in the mouth, but rather than damaging the cauldron, the blast curves along the inside and comes back out...and right into Mathine, slamming into her for 10 points and nearly knocking her over!
Rao, Mathine, and Kali left.
"Why do you think we want to steal from you?" Kali asked, continuing to try and resolve things peacefully.
Braver than necessary sometimes, Mathine covers everybody’s retreat, though Oryn’s friendly fire rebound has left her gasping for breath.
She hits the thing squarely, but her sword rebounds harmlessly. She takes a 5-foot step towards the door. The cauldron attacks.
With its third natural 1, the cauldron again misses miserably.
Round 4
Mathine takes another swing.
This time, the energy from her sword makes a small dent in the metal.
Everybody else is up.
The winds outside are crossable, but it will be slow going to get through and those fetishes are whipping around dangerously.
"The wind looks pretty real, but this is all pretty new to me. I agree we should leave this place and regroup."
Oryn moves to leave the hut. To Kali, "We are leaving, try and protect the fox as best you can. This wind may be a problem."
"Okay. Did we get what we need?"
"Nope. There is too much stuff in there to figure out where the Rat's Tail is without dealing with that cauldron. I cannot hurt it with my Air Blast. I am not sure if I am doing much damage with my spear - as it mostly just bounces off the thing."